Lead is a serious problem in many countries and communities. Lead poisoning has the potential to cause serious organ problems and even result in death. There have been many cases of lead poisoning throughout history and yet it is still used in the modern day. Lead seemed to have been the human savior at first, but after use for centuries, it has proven how deadly and dangerous it actually is.

Lead poisoning is caused by an increase in blood lead levels, which can cause a large range of medical conditions. With an increase in lead levels, irreversible neurological damage, cardiovascular effects, and reproductive toxicity may occur.
But even more dangerous is the effects of lead in young children. Lead poisoning is even more worrisome in children because children's bodies are still developing and growing. If lead poisoning becomes a factor early on in human development, then even worse effects can occur. As of 2002, the amounts of cases in children involving lead poisoning were around 310,000 (dropped from 13.5 million in 1978). Major developmental issues in children are those such as neurological dysfunction, cardiovascular deficiency, attention deficit disorder, and major organ failure. Most of these conditions are also found in adults, but should be seriously contemplated in children. A leading cause to lead poisoning in children for the past few decades has been the consumption of lead paint chips. Although interior lead paint has been banned since 1978, many houses still contain leaded paint because they were painted before the law was created. Children are also more skeptical to lead poisoning then adults because they absorb 40-50% of the lead that they place in there mouths compared to the near 10% that adults absorb.

The number of children with lead poisoning in the early 1990's has dropped from 4% to between 1-2% in the previous year. These numbers may not seem so severe or scary on paper, but the effects that lead poisoning leaves on these children and their families are huge. Some unborn children have been exposed to lead and develope adnormally while still in the womb. There have even been cases of children born without eyes.